Daily Archives: August 29, 2016

Jane Lubchenco, Tony Blair, and Vladimir Putin eventually all died and (of course) went straight to Hell. Upon arrival, they spy a red phone and ask what the phone is for. The Devil tells them it is for calling back to Earth. Putin calls Russia and talks for 5 minutes. When he finished the Devil informs him that the cost is a million dollars, so Putin writes him a check. Next Tony Blair calls England and talks for 30 minutes. When he’s finished the Devil informs him that cost is 6 million dollars, so Blair writes him a check. Finally, Lubchenco gets her turn and talks for 4 hours. When she’s finished, the Devil kindly informed her that there would be no charge and to feel free to call Silver Spring or Washington DC anytime. Putin goes ballistic and asks the Devil why Lubchenco got to call Silver Spring for free. The Devil replied, “Since Lubchenco became NMFS’s Premier of Implementation for Catch Shares, the federal fisheries inside 200-miles has gone to hell, so it’s a local call.” 20:18

Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans has rejected advice to list the Atlantic bluefin tuna as an endangered species. The long-awaited recommendation should preserve the region’s $10-million bluefin tuna fishery, industry representatives say. The department says western Atlantic bluefin tuna stocks have been rebuilding since 2011, when the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada said tuna should be listed as an endangered species under federal species-at-risk legislation. That would have made it illegal to kill, harm or capture the giant fish. Glenn MacKenzie of the Gulf Nova Scotia Tuna Association said he was “very relieved.” He’s one of 135 commercial tuna fishermen who fish from the Nova Scotia side of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. Read the story here 19:27

A trio of New Jersey fisherman could land $2.3 million more in prize money for the record 236.5-pound tuna they caught earlier this month in Maryland. Brian Suschke, a Trenton police sergeant and Rich Kosztyu, a Trenton firefighter, already won $767,091 for the catch with friend and boat owner Damien Romeo at the White Marlin Open in Ocean City, Md. But last week, the tournament announced that a Florida boat that won $2.8 million in the white marlin category – the sole qualifying fish in the category – may have violated tournament rules. And last Friday, the tournament filed an action asking a Maryland court decide the matter. In court filings, the tournament alleged fishermen on the winning boat failed polygraph examinations – a requirement for collecting a prize greater of $50,000. Read the story here 19:06

The 5th Coast Guard District is advising mariners and swimmers throughout the mid-Atlantic region Monday to use caution this week. Tropical Depressions Eight and Nine are forecasted to impact beaches and waterways from North Carolina to New Jersey as they transit the Mid-Atlantic region during the next several days. Tropical storm-force winds are possible during the next 48 hours. “Our primary concern is ensuring the safety of life at sea,” said Capt. William Lane, Fifth District Chief of Response. “We are encouraging all mariners, personal watercraft users, and beachgoers to make safety a priority as these two weather systems pass through the region.” Mariners are warned to take the following precautions to protect their vessels and their crews: Read the rest here 18:00

The International Fund for Animal Welfare says there have been several sightings of a manatee around Cape Cod. The manatee has reportedly been spotted off Nantucket, at Dowses Beach in Osterville and Oyster Pond in Chatham. “Here on the Cape it’s not very common,” IFAW research member Misty Niemeyer tells The Cape Cod Times. “We aren’t really quite sure what they are doing.” Anyone who spots the manatee should stay away and call the IFAW at 508-743-9548. Link 16:03

An international fisheries commission began discussing details of fishing restrictions for bluefin tuna in the northern Pacific at a meeting in southwestern Japan on Monday amid concerns about overfishing. At a subcommittee meeting of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission held through Friday in the city of Fukuoka, participants are discussing the possibility of invoking a catch limit based on Japan’s proposal. The panel is discussing specific control measures with an eye to reaching a formal agreement within this year. Meanwhile, nongovernmental organizations Greenpeace and the Pew Charitable Trusts have issued a statement requesting the WCPFC to immediately implement a 2-year moratorium on all commercial fishing for Pacific bluefin tuna. Read the rest here 15:10

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-ENGO., will speak Tuesday night about the effort to designate the New England Coral Canyons and Seamounts area as the nation’s first Marine National Monument in the Atlantic Ocean at Mystic Aquarium. Also speaking will be the aquarium’s Senior Research Scientist Peter Auster, who is among those trying to convince President Obama to make the designation before leaving office. There will also be a question-and-answer session followed by a reception with complimentary hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar. The event will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Those wishing to attend the event should RSVP Dale Wolbrink at [email protected] or (860) 694-9011. Link 13:12

There was a hefty irony to the announcement by Connecticut’s two U.S. senators earlier this summer that they were joining the sponsorship for a National Lobster Day next month. The iconic symbol of the state’s fishing industry for years, Long Island Sound was once flush with lobster, traps and people who made their livings from them. But no more. Connecticut’s lobster landings topped 3.7 million pounds a year, worth $12 million, in the late 1990s, but by 2014 had diminished to about 127,000 pounds worth a little more than $600,000. Instead of the picture of fishing success, lobster has become the face of climate change in New England: a sentinel of warming water, ocean acidification and other man-made impacts that have sent them and dozens of other marine animals scurrying in search of a more hospitable environment. Big Read. Read the story here 11:26

On Thursday, a 22-pound lobster named Big Lobi scuttled away to freedom after twin brothers from New Jersey bought it at the Chatham Fish Pier Market and released it into Ryder’s Cove. On Saturday afternoon, Big Lobi was found dead. Ray Wilkes, a retiree from Chatham, had just moored his boat in Ryder’s Cove after a day of fishing and whale watching when a large shape caught his eye near the shore. “I was paddling back in a dinghy and saw a large thing over there in the muck,” he said. He picked up the mysterious object and realized it was one of the biggest lobsters he had ever seen, he said. He took some pictures of the deceased crustacean and sent them to the Center for Coastal Studies. Chris and David Schmidt, of New Jersey, purchased the huge lobster, which they named Big Lobi in honor of Red Sox star David Ortiz (aka Big Papi), at the Chatham Pier Fish Market for $210. David Schmidt did not return a call for comment by the Times deadline. Read the story here 09:20

A company that builds commercial fishing boats in Reedsport netted a $3.4 million grant from the state this month, positioning itself to expand its workforce by 50 percent in the coming years. Fred Wahl Marine Construction, currently the biggest private employer in the coastal city, won the grant through the Oregon Department of Transportation and its ConnectOregon program. Its award was the second highest monetary award after an $8.3 million grant given to Union Pacific for railroad improvements. The award allows the company to begin work on a nine-story facility on Bolon Island, between Reedsport and Gardiner. The new building will be designed to be large enough to take on a bigger workload. The new facility would also take shipbuilding and repair work out of the rain when necessary. The company recently bought a six-story, 200-ton lift to haul boats out of the water and carry them into the proposed building. Once it’s completed, the company expects its roster of 91 employees to grow to about 130. Read the story here 08:40

NILS STOLPE: The New England groundfish debacle (Part IV): Is cutting back harvest really the answer?

While it’s a fact that’s hardly ever acknowledged, the assumption in fisheries management is that if the population of a stock of fish isn’t at some arbitrary level, it’s because of too much fishing. Hence the term “overfished.” Hence the mandated knee jerk reaction of the fisheries managers to not enough fish; cut back on fishing. What of other factors? They don’t count. It’s all about fishing, because fishing is all that the managers can control; it’s their Maslow’s Hammer. When it comes to the oceans it seems as if it’s about all that the industry connected mega-foundations that support the anti-fishing ENGOs with hundreds of millions of dollars a year in “donations” are interested in controlling. Read the article here

New protections to improve the long-term sustainability of England’s shellfish industry and support the next generation of fishermen have been announced by Fisheries Minister George Eustice. Read More »